Silverglen is being overrun by crime.
Last week alone, residents found a man tied and gagged in the boot of his car; school children discovered a decomposed body; and a pensioner was attacked and beaten by robbers.
A resident who did not want to be named, heard muffled cries coming from a car around 4am, last Wednesday and alerted the police.
The man, believed to be in his 30s, was found gagged with his legs and hands bound in the boot of the car, on Silverglen Drive.
The man claimed he had been hijacked by two men near the police training college in Moorton. He said the hijackers drove him to the Silverglen Drive dump site, where they tied him up and abandoned the vehicle.
On Friday, schoolchildren, who were cutting fruit, on Bulbul Drive, stumbled on a body.
A police source said the man was shot in his head. His hands were tied with rope and he was handcuffed. The source said they believed the body had been dumped there.
And last Sunday, Krishna Pillay, 68, was attacked and badly beaten while praying outside his home on Silverglen Drive.
PT Alarms spokesperson, Devan Govindasamy, said the suspects dragged Pillay into the house and demanded valuables while beating him up. He sustained severe injuries. The suspects were disturbed by the neighbours and fled. Pillay was taken to hospital.
Pillay’s family said this was the second time they had come under attack in the home.
In 2019, Pillay and his brother, Devapragasen Sagren Pillay, 57, were asleep when their home was burgled. Both brothers were attacked and Devapragasen, a bottle store owner and former librarian, was stabbed in the left side of his chest. He died from the stab wound.
The spike in crime has prompted community leaders to put in place measures to ensure that, ‘Silverglen does not become a crime hotspot or a dumping ground for bodies’.
Shaun Hammond, from the Silverglen Conservancy, said they were determined to eradicate crime in the area.
“Recently, there have been over 20 bodies discovered in various parts of Silverglen, which is a conservation footprint. A few weeks ago, the badly beaten, half-naked body of a man was found in the depths of the Silverglen Nature Reserve, near the dam.
“This will have to come to an end. We cannot allow the area to become a dumping ground for criminals. Dealing with illegal dumpers is enough.
He said the conservancy was working closely with crime intelligence detectives to clampdown on those who were using the conservation area to dump bodies.
“Since 2013, the area has been regularly patrolled, night and day, by metro police and law enforcement officers. This, after repeated incidents at the site. This eradicated the crime and reduced the illegal dumping. The area was also protected from land invasions in 2018.
“A special task unit was formed with numerous government role players to protect the conservation area, not excluding the nature reserve. We need this type of policing again, and we will do everything we can to put an end to the crime,” Hammond added.
Nerish Lukhun, chairperson of the Silverglen Community Policing Forum, said they too were concerned about the number of bodies being dumped in the area and the spike in crime.
“The entrance to the nature reserve is closed from Silverglen, and police and responders can only access the reserve from the Montford entrance. Guards were supposed to be stationed at the Montford entrance, but that never materialized. There is a boom gate but no security,” he said.
The Silverglen entrance was closed in 2018, when the area became unsafe.
Lukhun said the Silverglen entrance needed to be reopened so that security and police could patrol effectively.
“The area is manned by Bayview police, who have to drive all the way into Montford to enter the reserve or respond to calls. We will be addressing this to ensure proper policing in the area. Silverglen is one of the few communities that have two dedicated security vehicles.”
He added the CPF was working on installing a few more cameras in the area with enhanced technology.
“We urge people to be aware of their surroundings. When you see something, say something,” he said.
Suspicious activity can be reported to law enforcement officers, Don Beijnath on 084 920 9515 or Nerish Lukhun on 084 468 4857.